MANILA, Philippines – Who would have thought that someone who used to play online games could actually become topnotcher in the board exam?
In reality, there seems to be a negative perception when a person is an online gamer, especially if they are a student. Many immediately think that they are neglecting their studies and prioritizing gaming instead.
However, Niele Shem Geronimo Bañas, who topped the April 2024 Electronics Engineering Licensure Examinations (ECELE), proved that just because someone is an online gamer, it doesn't mean they can't pass the board exam, and not only did they pass, but they even ranked first!
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| Photo courtesy: Facebook/Niele Shem Geronimo Bañas |
Niele studied Bachelor of Science in Electronics Engineering at Technological University of the Philippines-Visayas, where he graduated magna cum laude.
In an interview with Niele, he admitted that his addiction to playing online games started in high school, and this continued into college. This habit worsened during the pandemic.
“My addiction started during my junior high school years, and peaked during the pandemic, where I would play until sunrise,” Niele admitted.
“But this addiction is on and off. I was able to quit during the start of my senior high school years, but it came back during the end of my senior high school years,” he added.
When he noticed that his studies were being affected, he made an effort to learn how to balance his studies with gaming.
“Luckily, at the end of the pandemic, I grew tired of the stress induced by constantly trying hard to rank up in online games, which led to me slowly quitting the game and only playing if I'm really bored or really stressed,” Niele said.
That's why during their review, they only played when they knew they had finished studying to reward themselves.
“At the start of my review, I scored 47 in ELEX (Electronics) Diagnostic exam. Fast forward to the board exam, I scored 93. I always thought of the subject as the most difficult out of the 4 board exam subjects yet this changed during review, the key here is to simply ‘start,’” he said in a Facebook post.
Niele obtained a passing rate of 91.80 percent in the licensure exam.
With this feat, Niele received Php 200,000 incentive from his alma mater.
Congratulations, Engr. Niele!
— Noel Ed Richards, The Summit Express
